Government urged to act to protect 'millions trying to battle alcohol' - with one Newcastle mum saying it's time to ban ads
North East health leaders and a woman who knows first-hand the dangers of alcohol have joined forces to urge Goverment to act to protect the public from booze.
Karen Slater from Ponteland knows more than most how dangerous alcohol can be - having sought solace in a bottle herself and grown up in a "hostile" environment where alcohol was a factor. She is backing the new report - which makes seven recommendations for "urgent" Government action - along with public health bosses around the region including Newcastle and Gateshead director of public health Alice Wiseman.
The report, produced by the Balance alcohol campaign and entitled "Reducing Alcohol Harm", recommends the Government brings in tighter curbs on alcohol advertising to protect children and the introduction of minimum unit pricing - like in Scotland - to tackle the proliferation of cheap booze. Other recomendations include bringing in mandatory health warnings and "overhauling" the Licensing Act.
The Government is also asked to commit to an "evidence-based" alcohol strategy, boost public education about alcohol harms, and ensure alcohol duty increases in line with inflation. Beyond that, the health leaders urge that the alcohol industry is kept out of the development of new policy and more pro-active support is put in place for those who may be at risk of problem-drinking.
Karen said: "Alcohol advertising and the pressure to drink is insidious. There are millions of people trying to battle or escape alcohol and yet it is everywhere – every night on TV, on billboards, on sport, social media and stockpiles at the front of supermarkets. For someone having a bad day or a bad moment, that can trigger a relapse.
“My reality and many others is the exact opposite from the allure of alcohol promotion. It’s about drink-fuelled isolation, domestic violence, child neglect and A&E being overrun by people under the influence of alcohol.”
Each of the region's six directors of public health is backing the campaign. Alice Wiseman, who holds that role in both Newcastle and Gateshead, said: "For too long the harms of alcohol have been soaring – but a lack of national regulation and a free pass for the alcohol industry to keep people drinking at risky levels has failed communities and hit our public finances.
“Many alcohol harms are preventable. We simply can’t afford for alcohol to be taking such a toll on individuals, families and communities and it is staggering to see the impact on frontline services across the North East. We now need to balance the profits of the alcohol industry with protecting local communities.
“Action within the region can only take us so far – we need a national conversation and evidence-based action to grapple with this alcohol crisis. The health and wealth of our region depend on it and we implore national Government to take this problem seriously.”
This comes as research from Balance has found that more than four in five (82%) people in the North East think alcohol is a "significant problem" regionally and nationally, while 59% say the Government has a responsibility to act to deal with alcohol harm through regulations and licensing.
Ailsa Rutter, director of Balance said: “The impact of alcohol is being felt on our health, criminal justice system, on our economy and across society with harms at record levels – this is an avoidable crisis but it has been ignored for too long. This is a unified call to action from leaders and real people based in the North East for positive and evidence-based action to reduce alcohol harm.
“Four out of five people in the North East (82%) see alcohol as a big problem regionally and nationally, and yet awareness of its health risks is still worryingly low.. It is clear that reducing alcohol harms must be at the forefront of the Government’s efforts to build a healthier, safer and more economically productive country.
“And for the sake of local families, we need more action to prevent vulnerable people from becoming ill and dying from alcohol and to reduce the burden on our NHS and emergency services."
Leading policing figures have also spoken of the value of cracking down on alcohol harms. Joy Allen, Police and Crime Commissioner for County Durham and Darlington, said: "I offer my full support to Balance and its blueprint for national action to reduce alcohol harms.
"Alcohol-related harm is deeply rooted with inequality, and it is no coincidence that the North East suffers some of the highest rates in the country. With around 1 million people across the UK drinking at levels that seriously endanger their health, this is a crisis that can no longer be ignored. Families in our region are crying out for help, and I have personally witnessed the life-shattering impact alcohol-related crime has on victims, as well as the unbearable strain it places on public services already stretched to breaking point.
"In my force area, more than 33% of serious violent offences are alcohol-related. This is unacceptable. We cannot allow people to continue dying from preventable alcohol-related diseases, nor can we tolerate the crimes such as violence, theft, and criminal damage that tear our communities apart and cost taxpayers millions of pounds each year."
One of the North East's most senior medics agreed. Dr Neil O’Brien, chief medical officer for the North East and North Cumbria NHS Integrated Care Board, said: “Alcohol harm is often rooted in the inequalities faced by communities such as those in the North East. Alcohol causes and contributes to serious illnesses and episodes requiring medical care, resulting in nearly 1 million hospital admissions and secondary diagnoses in the NHS every year.
“Alcohol can harm the body in a lot of different ways, from severe diseases of the liver and pancreas, increased risk of at least seven types of cancer, heart disease and stroke. People also sometimes turn to alcohol when they experience mental health problems, but in many cases the effect of alcohol can make mental health worse."
Speaking about health service reform last week, Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: "“We do take this issue of chronic disease seriously and the impact is having on our lives – our life expectancy, our ability to live our lives to the fullest extent for the longest time possible.
“I think we are in this appalling situation when we are living longer, but becoming sick sooner – that’s terrible for the quality of life, it’s also terrible for the economy, for the labour market and for the financial sustainability of our health and care services. So when it comes to having some cake or going down the pub, everything in moderation."
The leading minister added he hoped to "do things with people" when it came to bringing in new legislation to protect public health.